"The Road goes ever on and on."
Bilbo Baggins
In 1455, Johannes Gutenberg revolutionized the availability of knowledge with the invention of letterpress printing. Today, there is a new revolution taking place in this field. Digital information systems, both offline as CD-ROM and online on the Internet and other networks, are providing us with completely new ways of seeking, finding, combining and modifying pieces of information and the connections between them – and we are just at the beginning of this development.
Digital media will never replace books. They cannot match the clarity, sensuality and especially the cosy retreat from everyday life that a book can provide. For certain purposes, however, digital media are far superior to books, especially where reference works and databases are concerned. Immense storage capacities, flexible search possibilities, the freedom to create any desired selection lists and the option of modifying data offer enormous advantages.
Plantus is a digital tool. It is neither a multimedia spectacle, nor a book that has been subsequently digitized. Plantus is a highly sophisticated and optimized database system for plants with horticultural applications. It contains entries on around 7,500 annuals, biennials, perennials, shrubs and trees for use in all applications, with comprehensive profiles and some 6,000 photographs. Plantus enables you to perform complex queries on the basis of particular search criteria and generates, as a result, plant lists that can be stored, retrieved, processed and printed. These plant lists can be used for planting plans, consulting purposes, plant orders, quantity or inventory lists, and other applications. You can transfer these lists to other programs as you wish, e.g., for text editing or tabular calculations.
The plant profiles, photographs, filter lists and pick lists in Plantus are all interconnected. It is possible at any time to retrieve additional plant information, display lists as a photo file, zoom in on photos or display the plant profile associated with a photo. You can modify existing plant data at any time, and adapt it to suit your needs. Additionally, you can extend the database structure using your own database fields.
This user's handbook shows you how to use Plantus with the help of step-by-step examples, progressing from the simple, basic terms to the complex functions of the database.
Take a little pleasure in experimenting and you will find that this is an ideal way of becoming familiar with the program. Feel free to try things out; you will not be able to do any great harm by doing so. I am always grateful for suggestions and ideas. If you have any questions, problems or wishes for further developments, please feel free to contact us and we'll be happy to help you.
I wish you every success and satisfaction in using Plantus.
Nils Bödeker
Bremen, March 2001
